1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to boat hulls and boat hull frames and more particularly to a unitized frame comprised of fiber-reinforced plastic and a method for manufacturing the same.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The prior art is replete with designs and techniques for constructing boat hulls and boat hull frames of moderate size. Included in the art is the ancient and well-known craft of building frames consisting of a keel and rib members of wood and then planking over the assembled frame to complete the hull. Also known in the art is the technique of casting an entire hull of fiber-reinforced plastic or fiberglass, as it is often referred to.
Several patents are illustrative of techniques combining both wood and synthetics or plastics. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,758,321 discloses a hull structure which is fundamentally a plastic shell layed up over wood-reinforcing ribs. U.S. Pat. No. 2,569,224 reveals a technique utilizing a thin layer of sheet plastic between two layers of wood planking. U.S. Pat. No. 2,743,465 discloses a hull comprising an exterior and interior layer of plastic layed over wood planks. U.S. Pat. No. 3,139,371 describes a material comprised of plastic-impregnated nylon mesh forming inner and outer layers over a balsa wood core which may be easily molded into boat hull configurations. As will be described below, the present invention involves an approach heretofore unknown to the inventor employing the reverse of the general technique of plastic over wood illustrated above.